Seeing Double
by onioN44
Summary: Incase you haven't noticed, Kurt Cobain and Max look strangley alike... What if they both met in some way?
1. Chapter 1

Seeing Double

Seeing Double

Across the Universe

Chapter 1

A/N: Please note that Max and Kurt Cobain are from different eras so I'm moving Kurt's age back so he's roughly around Max's age. Sorry is everything isn't accurate!!

"Jude!" Max cried and ran to him. He enveloped him in a hug for a short moment.

"Max! How the hell are ya?" Jude shouted.

"Good, good. How ya been treating my 'lil sis?"

"Why don't you ask her yourself?" Jude stopped grinning.

His buddy froze and pulled at his shirt.

"Yeah… it's over." Jude looked down. A moment of silence.

"'Kay well whatever. I haven't spoken to either of you since Sadie and Jojo's number one. How long ago was that anyways?" They started walking from the bus station-from where Jude came off-and to Max's cab.

"Can't believe how cold it's got. In Liverpool it's worse. I haven't seen Sadie or Jojo since what… April?" Jude climbed in the passenger seat and threw his shoulder bag down by his feet.

"Whoa. I never realized it was that long ago. What is it-September now? Where'd you leave Lucy? Out of curiosity only."

"I asked if she wanted to come back for the '70s… It's gonna be a whole new world; new people, places, you know. I wanted to take her but she refused to come; she thought I was pulling something weird." Jude shrugged.

"Liverpool, huh? That doesn't sound like Lucy. You guys have only been living-living together for like four months! She'll come back, you'll apologize and things will be normal. It always happens with Lucy. I know who she is." Max looked over at Jude.

Jude turned away and looked down. "Could you please start the car?" He whispered.

"What in God's name…"

"Start the car, Max." He said louder with a chuckle.

"Oh right. I'm telling ya now, Judey, it's got a bit of a kick to it." Max frowned, shoved the key, and spun it. Nothing.

"What's the kick? Nothing's even starting." Jude looked up at Max. The dire parking lot was emptying and the station's streetlights were starting to flicker on.

"Shit. Not again. They won't supply us with new cabs. Well I guess you could've figured that one out. Jesus, this is a pain in the ass." He tried it again.

"Are all cabs like this?"

"Mostly, yeah. Some people got fired for not showing up on time so business is running really slow lately. Dammit." Max cursed again.

"Here, let me have a go at it." Jude pulled the key out."

"It's useless; I hate to tell you this but we might be here all night." Max laughed lightly and watched as Jude slowly stuck the key in upside down and turned.

"You're right: these things are cheap. Your boss couldn't even find cabs with good enough security!" The engine grumbled to life after the third twist.

"Yes! Looks like we're getting home tonight! If I can find a gas station in the next two minutes." Max pulled in reverse and sped out from the lot, shooting gravel bits behind him.

"So, how was the good life anyways?" He asked Jude.

"Oh, it was great. But then some things were happening about in the city; me mum was having some troubles so we had no place to go. Lucy met some people that we started bunking with and then… well it just went so fast. When we moved in with some friends, that's when all the-uh-drama happened." Jude fumbled with his pack.

Max turned his eyes from the road to Jude.

"Oh yeah? How long ago was this?" He finally said.

"'Bout a month ago. Then I got sick of it and asked her if she wanted to come back to America. I knew I wanted to. If I can't see me mum in Liverpool, what's the point of being there?" He chuckled softly.

Max stopped switching his eyes back and forth-the road and Jude-and looked straight ahead. Neither spoke.

"But that's not important. Right? What about you? Where're you living now? I mean, Sadie and Jojo are probably so famous that they're across the world right now, huh?" They both laughed.

"Not quite. Across the hallway more like it. They didn't wanna go anywhere outside the city. Unlike them, but I think something's up. Prudence is staying with me and my bud Krist." Max stole a look from Jude.

"Krist, huh? When did you get your own place?" Jude already knew the answer to this one.

"Uhh… Well the thing is, Pru and Rita moved in with Krist and I somehow met him-through Jojo or something. That's when Sadie kicked me out and she moved into the same building as Krist. That's when I moved in. Smaller apartments." Max shrugged a couple times.

Jude smiled and looked ahead.

It was silent for a minute until the old cab grumbled, roared, and then jerked to a stop.

"Dammit!" Max slammed his palm into the steering wheel.

"Now what?" Jude set his pack by his foot again.

"We walk to a gas station and see if we can get some juice. I swear there's a leak in this thing. I just loaded up yesterday. Jesus, it's just a piece of shit anyways." Max undid his belt, opened the car door, then noticed Jude wasn't moving.

"What?" He asked.

"Do you have anything in the back?" Jude looked up.

"Are you kidding me? I barely have any cash on me. Can you take it?"

Jude smiled. _Same old, same old._

"Yeah… how much longer do we have to go anyways?"

"I'd say… one more town and then we'd be parked in front of the old-school New York apartment."

"Alright. Well let's go." They both climbed out and started the long journey to a station.

A/N: Sorry for such a slow beginning. R+R!


	2. Chapter 2

Seeing Double

Seeing Double

Across the Universe

Chapter 2

A/N: Sorry for such a… bleak chapter (it should've been better for the first one) but you got to do what you got to do, right? Well I hope this one is more satisfying and your comments will send me miles! R+R!

"So this is your new place?" Jude threw up his arms and spun as soon as he walked in Max's new flat.

Max followed behind, out of breath. "Oh yeah. Sorry about the stairs."

Jude ignored the comment and started walking, exploring around. "Pretty nice. Where's your roomies?"

"I don't know; probably drinking their asses off at this moment." Max walked through an open door.

"Krist's a drinker? I didn't think Prudence was either." Jude followed him after setting his bag on a torn couch.

"Are you kidding me? Well I didn't really think Prudence was either but Krist's always bringing drunken friends… I don't think he's smashed but maybe-well I don't know. That's not important." Max shut the drawers he was looking in and turned around. "So how do you like it?"

Jude stepped back in the doorway and looked at the crammed space he and Max called a room. There was a window which was located near the far left side; a bed on the far right; a dresser and cracked, stained mirror in between the two and beside the door were 2 garbage bags filled with who-knows-what.

"I love it. But where will you be?" Jude turned to Max who was looking at the tainted carpet.

"I'm taking the living room. As stupid as this sounds, I've been working on this forever. Ever since I heard you were coming back. But enough of this because I'm hungry and I have a job to work tomorrow."

Jude smiled, threw his pack on the bed and followed Max out into the main room; which consisted of a beat up couch, a fridge, counter tops, a cabinet, and some small wooden chairs.

"Well since we have no food whatsoever-frigging Prudence-we have to have take-out." Max took his head out of the fridge and turned to Jude.

"Unless you feel like having beer. Because we have ice cream and beer. Oh and peanut butter. And cookies but they're stale."

"It'll do." Jude peeled off his jacket and tossed it over the couch, followed by a small bag of cookies and a jar of peanut butter. Jude rushed to the couch and opened the cookie bag. Max soon came to the couch with 2 beers in hand.

"Oh shit!" Jude was awaken by Max's yells around the apartment. He rubbed his eyes and tried to locate his shoes.

"Jude, come on; let's go!" Max ran back in the room, trying to pull on a pair of pants at the same time.

"What for?" Jude stood up, and then fell back down. Max handed him a lit cigarette.

"Take this for a second." He did up his belt and pants while Jude took a couple puffs and coughed. Max snatched it back, took a final gust then burned it out.

Max was wearing a cleaner shirt and Jude was still trying to find his shoe.

"Forget your shoe-unless you wanna get fired!" Max snapped and took one off his foot and gave it to him.

"Fired from what?" Jude had to run to the front door and try to get on Max's shoe. Max never cared about these things.

"Your new job! Now let's go." They stepped out the residence and stopped. Max felt his pockets and mumbled. "Got that… have it… keys…"

"What? Am I cab driver too?"

"Well I'm not paying for you… in anyway. So if you wanna keep living here, yes." Jude smiled and followed Max down the stair railing. After 20 seconds, they reached the lobby.

"Okay we have to be there at eleven… Shit. We're already late."

"What's such the big deal? Are they desperate or something?" Jude was jogging with Max the cab.

"Well yes. Everyone's been quitting because of crappy business; no tips, accidents, the regular. So now we're going out of business so I promised a guy here at eleven but we're kinda late for that." They both got in the beat-up cab and Max started it the first try using Jude's trick.

"Okay let's go."

Max and Jude ran into each other a couple more times that day purposely. Max didn't stop asking Jude about Lucy and Jude wanted to figure out why Max didn't want a girlfriend-or if he was hiding someone.

"Jude, I would tell you. I'm not hiding anything and I've had issues with girls." Erasing the fact that he had one at the flat the night before last night.

"Yeah well me and Lucy weren't meant to be." Jude would say.

Max was thinking about that all day. Lucy would call and probably wouldn't approve of Max and Jude living together again.

"I just don't get it. It's frigging Jude! And Lucy! They were in love. I don't want to… Well whatever." Max said to himself all day. He could never finish saying his last sentence.

Finally the suspension was killing him. He called Lucy on a pay phone the chance he could; with him knowing Jude's old number in Liverpool, it was possible.

"Hello?" A deep, gruff voice answered.

"Is Luce around?"

"Why?" The voice cleared up a bit.

"Tell her it's her brother." He wasn't about to have an engaging conversation with this chump.

"Hello?" Lucy's heartwarming voice wasn't so heartwarming anymore. More sad.

"Lucy?" He waited for the impact.

"Max! Oh my God! This is great! How's work? Prudence? Krist?" her voice lightened up.

"Everything's good. You sound upset. Is everything alright?"

"What are you talking about? Everything's great, dandy, fabulous!" She said almost too quickly.

"Yeah well I'm worried about you Luce. I mean, you have a phone! That means big business." He knew that Jude bought it before he left.

"It was a gift from Jude before he left." Her voice softened.

"What about that anyways? You guys were in the deep pit I call love. What made the flame die?"

"Max I don't know what's up with you, but I don't think Jude would want me telling you all this."

"And your gonna respect that. I get it. But you can trust me. He told me some things but he said you should tell me the rest. So here's the best time to do it." Max was lying terribly through his teeth.

"I don't care what Jude says. I just met some new people and then things fell out of place then back in." She said in a small whisper.

"What's his name?" Max asked in the same tone and volume.

"I'm with him because he reminds me of you. I can't do this anymore Max."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Max said louder.

"He's just like you, Max! He looks like you, speaks like you, that's why I love him so."

"What's his name? What's the reason Jude's so depressed right now?" Max yelled louder.

There was silence.

"If you would like to continue, please insert more money. You have exactly one minute before your call ends." Max fumbled in his pockets for more change. He shoved in several pennies.

"It's Kurt. Kurt Cobain." She hung up.

Max did the same and walked out of the booth.

"Kurt… Kurt…"

Meanwhile, Lucy walked past her waiting boyfriend and into the bathroom.

"I can't do this… I can't do this anymore."


	3. Chapter 3

Seeing Double

Seeing Double

Across the Universe

Chapter 3

A/N: The last chapter kinda sped up at the end but hopefully this one will be like that the whole time. R+R!

Later that night-the same night Max phoned Lucy-Max talked to Jude. They were alone once again.

"You probably don't want me to tell you this, but I'm going to anyways." Max started after they finished eating a small snack at midnight.

"Wait. Can I have a drink first?" Jude asked seriously and then grinned.

Max whipped a flask and tossed it to his bud. Jude shrugged and drank.

"I called Lucy today." Jude spat out what was left in his mouth and choked on the rest.

"Why in God's name would you do that?" He coughed.

"You were killing me, man. You wouldn't tell me anything! I had to figure it out some how. And now I'm satisfied. So now you don't have to worry and I can stop bugging you." Max yelled back.

"I woulda told you tonight! But now that you know, there's no point telling you the rest. What did she tell you anyways?"

"Well I know she's a lot more sad. And his name's Kurt. She's really depressed. She hung up as soon as she told me the name."

"Does she want to come back to America?" Jude fumbled with his pockets.

"I bet she does. Badly. But she doesn't have a choice right? That Kurt guy sounds tough. She's with him but only because he reminds her of me."

"Well yes, that's pretty much all of it… She didn't tell you I walked in on her when I got back from work did she?" He looked up from his pockets and grinned.

"No! Did you really?" Max smiled back.

"Yes! It was the scariest moment of me life! No. I'm just kidding. But I did." Jude couldn't stop smirking.

Jude and Max were laughing like there was no tomorrow.

"Do you have any cigarettes?" Jude finally asked.

"No. But I did get a little bit of a treat today." Max pulled out two small amounts of marijuana and handed one to Jude. "Don't light it yet. I have to ask you something first."

"What is it, Maxey my boy?" Jude was still grinning like an idiot.

"Why did you come back here? Why not stay in Liverpool with your mom?" Max asked seriously.

"Me mum's sick. And has a new gentleman at her feet. She doesn't need me anymore. And how could I stay knowing she was there and you were here stuck with Prudence! I didn't know what was gonna happen."

"Oh. Well cheers. You now have my permission to light up. But don't waste it because I spent all my pay from today!" Max lit them both.

"Cheers."

At the same time-midnight. Lucy was sitting on a ruffled blanket on an old loveseat; waiting.

The loveseat was facing the front door so she could see who came in.

Fifteen minutes later, stumbled in a smashed, and drugged Kurt Cobain-with someone else.

His shaking hand flicked on a light and Lucy could see a woman hanging off his shoulders, kissing his neck. She reached to turn the light back off.

Lucy coughed loudly and blinked back tears.

Kurt turned the light back on, opened his eyes and saw Lucy sitting. He mumbled something into the woman's ear. She turned, got off the man and walked out the door which they entered moments before.

Lucy sat, no longer holding in tears, letting them slide down her face. She didn't say anything and waited for Kurt to go into the bedroom. He scratched the back of his neck then left.

She flicked on all the lights, knowing Kurt wouldn't be waking up any time soon. Lucy grabbed all of her things, threw them in a sack, took all the money she made-all of it-and left.

"Hello? Mom? It's Lucy. I've decided I'm going back to live with Max. Maybe he was right; me and Jude are meant to be. Kurt's not who I thought he was so I'm leaving. You wouldn't approve." She hung up then added the phone onto the pile of things in her pack.

She wrote a note for Kurt.

Kurt,

I'm sorry if I ever done anything bad to you, but this is the worst. You don't have a job and your spending all my money on drugs and alcohol. Perhaps other women. I'm sick of your games. Don't follow me. Don't ever try to contact me again. I wish you luck in anything and everything you ever do.

Lucy

After a couple curses to herself, she was ready to go.

8:30 am, loud raps on the front door woke up everyone in Max's home.

First three, three more, then again.

"Yeah, yeah, we're coming." Krist emerged from his and Prudence's room. Prudence came close behind, still wearing make up from the night before.

Krist opened the door. "Well hello there." He only opened it so much so no one else could see.

"Uh, Jude?" She was extremely puzzled.

"Lucy!" Max shouted, grabbed the back of Krist's shirt and pulled him back into the room. "Go play your guitar or whatever you call it."

"Bass!" He yelled but went back into his room.

"Max!" She smiled and hugged him.

"What made you come back?" Max asked when he finally let go of her.

"I never really wanted to stay in Liverpool, but I knew Jude was gonna be moving in with you. But you know what they say-if you can't beat 'em, join 'em! Where is Jude anyways?" She set down her pack and stepped away from Max.

Jude was looking at the reunion and turned away when Lucy caught his eye.

"Jude?" She looked at him up and down. Max watched them both.

He looked up and smiled a small smile. "So you came back." He whispered.

"Not for you if that's what your thinking." She snapped.

"Did he do that?" He motioned with his hand over her body. She looked down and nodded softly.

It was quiet for a moment.

"Come on, Luce. Let's go get you cleaned up." Max took her shaking hand and led her to the bathroom. "Pru, take care of her, 'kay?" He handed her hand to a grinning Prudence.

Prudence led her into the bathroom and Jude and Max were left alone.

"What did you tell her? That I still love her?" Jude asked.

"Nope. I can't believe she didn't come sooner." Max shook his head at the bathroom door.

"Neither can I."


	4. Chapter 4

Across the Universe  
Chapter 4  
A/N: Sorry I haven't updated in forever… it's not like anyone's reading this anyways, but moving along. Okay so I've finally thought up of something good. I think. I'm going to use my only review to help me move along.

The next morning was a late morning. Thursday, September 4th. No one cared about where they had to be; who they had to tend; jobs that needed to be completed; all forgotten. When Krist finally woke up, ten minutes after two, he stepped outside of the building.

Max rolled off the beat-up living room couch soon after and strode outside out to the nearest pub.

Lucy woke up, plugged in the phone, then tried to find some coffee.

Jude got up the latest and laid in bed for a while, just thinking. Prudence was nowhere to be found.

When Jude finally emerged from his room, Lucy had found a very small tin of ground coffee and had made herself a cup. Jude sat beside her on the couch gave her a look-over.

"What?" Lucy shot him a dirty look.

"Nothing… it's just…" Jude looked away, embarrassed.

"Kurt did this to me." Lucy stated firmly.

"Well who else would? Why would you stay with him if you knew it would end up like this?" Jude looked at her face, trying to catch her eye but got nothing in return. Other than a look in her coffee mug.

"The relationship was bad between us, I know. But I needed something-someone-new, Jude; we needed some space." She looked up.

"Then why didn't you talk to me? You got quiet after a bit and then… well one thing led to another. I knew something was up. Lucy, you wanted this relationship to be open. We could be open to each other. But now it leads to this." There was silence.

"I met him at one of Skinner Box's gigs. You know that Frankie guy you helped deliver papers or something like that? That band? Well I found out he was in it. Lead singer. Things were fine; it was the night when you decided to go home earlier because of the terrible headache you had. I stayed longer and he was drunk. I soon was wasted and then… well I think you could guess." She took a sip from her mug then looked away once again.

Jude shook his head and turned his body away from her.

"So are you running back here for protection or you really need someplace to stay?" He finally asked.

"Well I figured I had to apologize to some people: my mother, Max, Prudence, Sadie, Jojo… you."

_Why Sadie and Jojo?_ Jude wondered to himself.

"You really should've stayed in Liverpool, Jude." Lucy continued. "You didn't have to stay with me, but what about your mother?"

"She has someone for her, don't you worry." Jude just couldn't get over the fact that Lucy came back to America to apologize to him! And to get away but…

"But Jude, it's your _mother_. Aren't you going to scare him away?" Lucy sat up straight and tried to grab Jude's eye.

"Lucy, I'm sure he can handle a sick woman. Maybe me mum needs some loving in her life. It's good for her." Jude looked at Lucy for a split second then stood up just as Lucy was finishing her drink.

_Jude's certainly gone crazy if he isn't going back to take care of his mom. He's always been there for her and somewhat the other way around too. He's never let any man step into his home until they pass his approval. He seems to be shaking off everything I tell him. _Lucy thought to herself while she shook around the last drop in the cup.

"Sounds like your trying to drive me away." Jude looked back as he stepped from the living room into his bedroom.

"I'm not trying to scare you out of here, Jude. I'm telling you what's wrong with your mom. I thought you would care." But Jude didn't listen. He changed his shirt, slipped on his only pair of shoes and headed toward the front door.

"If you see Max, tell him I'm out earning some money for a meal tonight." Jude smiled and shut the door behind him. Lucy stared at the closed entrance for quite a bit before standing up and rinsing her cup.

_Well, now what? _She asked herself when she was finished. She leaned on the chipped counter and was thinking of what she could do with herself for the whole day when the phone rang.

"Hello?" She answered in a sophisticated manner.

"Lucy?" A scraggy voice answered back.

"Kurt, I already told you, I'm done with you and your… games. How could you find out the number for this phone anyways? It changed because I'm in America." She sounded almost frightened.

"I went through a lot of trouble to find this number, baby. But now we can be together at last." He sounded… possessed.

_Probably with drugs._ Lucy thought while rolling her eyes. The scariness from the conversation vanished immediately.

"Kurt, where are you? Liverpool? Found someone new yet?" Lucy tried to make conversation.

"Haven't found anyone worthy yet. What about you? Any new card that you feel like playing? What's his name? Is that why you left?" He pondered.

"No one new. My brother is the only man here. His friends visit-girls only pretty much the whole time. Where are you?" She answered somewhat politely.

"America." He answered, with (it sounded like) a smirk on his face.

She froze and gathered herself up again.

"Whereabouts?" She tried not to sound so intent for the answer.

"New York." She twisted the phone cord in between her fingers in wonder.

_It's not like he can find me here. _She tried to tell herself.

"Whereabouts?" Lucy asked again.

"Why don't you just answer your front door?"


End file.
